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The
Squamidian Report – May 3 / 25
Online
Versions
Of This And Past Issues Issue
#1197 The
Africa
Trip ****
The Africa Trip
Olivia: South Africa is such a beautiful place! My favorite spot was Marloth Park, a residential area just outside Kruger National Park, which is a massive game reserve known for the Big Five—lions, leopards, buffalo, rhinos, and elephants. We managed to see three of them! What made Marloth Park so special was how close we got to the wildlife—zebras, giraffes, warthogs, and different types of buck would come right up to us. We could even feed some of them by hand, which was amazing. Another highlight was visiting Sun City, a resort with a wave pool, water slides, and so many fun activities. I also felt really lucky to meet a lot of my South African family, including my grandpa Eddie, whom I’d only ever seen on video calls. The whole experience was unforgettable and so different from life in Canada. Kyra and I even got our hair braided—mine was pink and Kyra’s was blonde. Thank you for reading about my trip—I hope you enjoyed it! --------- Kyra: Hi, I’m Kyra! I had an amazing time in South Africa. Even though the first night wasn’t the best because I was sick, the rest of the trip totally made up for it. One of my favorite parts—besides meeting so many family members—was definitely Sun City. If you don’t know what it is, it’s a beautiful resort about two hours from Johannesburg, and it’s definitely one of the top five places I’d love to visit again. Also, there’s a dessert franchise called Milky Lane, which is kind of like Dairy Queen—but even better! I know my story is shorter than Olivia’s, but she already covered a lot of the trip. Thanks for reading! -------- Lauren: Our trip to South Africa, despite the long travel times, was a huge success. The girls absolutely loved it—they met extended family and got to spend precious time with their grandpa Eddie. Kyra was just a baby the last time we visited, so it was especially meaningful for both girls to finally meet him in person. We started our trip in Marloth Park, right outside Kruger National Park. It was such a unique experience—wild animals like zebras, giraffes, monkeys, warthogs, and even mongoose would wander right up to the houses. Some could even be fed by hand, which the kids loved. A nearby restaurant had a viewpoint where we could spot crocodiles, hippos, and all kinds of buck. During our stay, Ryan was stung by a scorpion—thankfully, it was one of the larger white ones, which are less dangerous. We monitored him closely, and apart from a very sore toe, he was fine. It could have been much worse if it had been one of the smaller black scorpions, which are very venomous. We ventured into Kruger Park twice and saw three of the Big Five, along with giraffes, zebras, warthogs, and a lion. Sadly, we didn’t catch sight of any leopards, rhinos, or cheetahs. Midway through the trip, we headed to another area for a few days, but the weather didn’t cooperate—it was mostly rainy and overcast. It ended up being a more relaxing part of the trip, but if we had known about the weather, we probably would have skipped it. Next, we spent a few days at Sun City, a resort built inside the crater of an extinct volcano. The weather was great there, and the girls had a great time swimming, riding the water slides, and eating tons of ice cream. After that, we returned to my dad’s house to reconnect with more family and old friends. One special highlight was a joint birthday party with my favorite uncle—we both turned 50 this year. It had been over 13 years since I’d seen them, so it was an amazing reunion. We wrapped up our trip with some relaxing days before heading back to Canada. It was a truly memorable holiday for all of us. Olivia, Kyra, Lauren
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From Nova Scotia Sus
We are getting warmer temps during the days now but still chilly at night. Some nights we have to bring in all our seedlings so they won't freeze. We have over 30 trays that fill our kitchen and dining tables. We can't take a chance on losing these plants as we have worked hard to get them this far. Yesterday we decided to pull weeds from our strawberry gardens. It's very rewarding to do this so we will have a good crop of berries even though we are stiff and sore from crawling on the ground. I love working in the garden and it really pays off. We are back to working on our sawmill too. We still have lots of logs to make into boards or beams. In the long run we have saved lots of money doing it ourselves. Lumber is not cheap and we are always building something. It's great to be self sufficient. Lots of exercise too. Sus ****
From Wayne
Spring has finally arrived with buds big enough to see actual growth. The grass is greening and the livestock are salivating to get into greener pastures. Our newest residents here, the 7 tiny shoats (piglets in Amurika) were allowed out of the maternity shed into the warm bright sun. Here is the pack tasting grass for the first time.
Below, mother pig tries to eat enough grass to meet the energy demands of her sucklings but to no avail. Maybe this is what Mark Carney meant by net zero energy consumption!
Nothing else is happening here. I will have missed the graveside service for brother Russell by the time this goes to press (or to digits might be more appropriate). At 91 years old this month, a trip from the backwoods of New Brunswick to the backwoods of Ontario only to see a package lowered into the ground was a bit more than I cared to do. If I were to do that to visit him while he were alive and seemingly quite well, that would be another matter. He was planning to come here for a visit so traveling to Ontario just wasn't on my list and Sylvia can't travel so I would be making the trip alone. Please accept my belated apologies for being absent in body but not in mind.
Wayne ****
From Gary
Hi everyone. I drove up to Wiarton today to pick up my Harley and a few other things stored at a friends place. Evy is still doing fine in the Philippines. Getting hot and humid there though. My renovation is coming along slowly. My son, Max is much better at taping and mudding than I am. Sure hope Evy likes the surprise. Had to mow the lawn yesterday already. Garlic is about 10” tall already. 1st attempt at growing garlic. Planted 130 bulbs of 3 different varieties. All but 2 or 3 didn’t come up. Seed germination for tomatoes and peppers are ok. Green peppers didn’t germinate at all. Will keep you updated on how the garden grows. Take care and stay safe everyone. Gary Correction. All garlic except 2 or 3 came up. ****
From Doug
I have sold my little Royal Enfield adventure bike. Didn’t want to but there was no point in keeping her. A friend of mine, Mary, the woman that rides all over the continent on her motorcycles and then writes books about it wanted the Enfield and so I sold it to her. By doing that, the bike has gone to a good home and to someone who will make good use of her. I had visions of the bike sitting, unused, in the back corner of the garage for several years and becoming unusable as any kind of machinery deteriorates when not used. I could no longer make good use of her. It was not meant for 2-up riding and even if it was, Sue could not climb up onto the high seat and if she did, she certainly would not have been able to get back off. Therefore, I could not take her along when riding that bike. She can get onto and off the Harley making going for rides on it doable. At this stage in our lives, I can’t leave Sue home alone for any length of time so heading out on the Enfield had become out of the question, even if that ride was just up and down the highway. The Enfield was meant for heading up the back roads, into the wilderness. I know better at my age than to do that alone and so heading out for a few hours by myself just wouldn’t be a good idea anymore either. I did have a neighbor who I’d ride with but he moved away. Sad solution: sell the Enfield, which I have now done. Oh well. And speaking of Sue riding on the back of my motorcycles, she has been riding on the back of my bikes for 56 years. Its something we can still do as long as its warm enough out that I can keep her warm by bundling her up in her riding gear. We rode down to Horseshoe Bay last Saturday on the Harley and the ride was quite enjoyable. On Thursday of this past week it was quite summery out so we again mounted up and did a nice ride. We still have that. * On
a
totally different note, here’s something I came across
and it
certainly makes sense… Doug ****
Have
a
Good One ****
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